Trump promises to rebuild the military in American Legion address

CINCINNATI – A day after Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton addressed members of the American Legion at their 98th national convention in Cincinnati, Republican nominee Donald Trump made an appearance Thursday morning before the veteran’s organization with a message that, if elected, he will rebuild the military.

Trump told the gathering that it is important to give the U.S. military the tools that they need to defend the country.

“We will rebuild our depleted military and pursue a state-of-the-art missile defense,” Trump said. “We will do it based on those three very famous words: peace through strength.”

Trump also called for a “total reform” of the Veterans Affairs Department saying that it is in “very sad shape.”

“I will appoint a secretary of Veterans Affairs whose personal mission will be to clean up the VA,” Trump said. “The secretary’s sole mend will be to serve our veterans, not bureaucrats, not politicians, but our great veterans.”

Trump re-emphasized his commitment to defend the borders against members of terrorist groups like ISIS and other terrorist organizations.

He also called for stopping the influx of Syrian refugees into the country.

“I will be uncompromising in the defense of the United States, and our friends and our good allies,” Trump said. “We are going to end the era of nation building and create a new foreign policy, joined by our partners in the Middle East that is focused on destroying ISIS and radical Islamic terrorism.”

Trump visited with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto yesterday in Mexico City, before returning to the U.S. to deliver a detailed immigration policy speech in Phoenix, where he vowed to build a southern border wall and create a deportation force to remove millions of illegal immigrants from the country.

“We agreed in the meeting to stop the illegal flow of guns, drugs, cash, and people across the border, and to take out the cartels,” Trump said.

After his appearance in Cincinnati, Trump spoke at a rally in Wilmington, Ohio. 50 miles northeast of Cincinnati.

Don Weber

Don Weber is a Video Journalist for Spectrum News and covers politics and education on Pure Politics, Kentucky’s only nightly program dedicated to state politics. Don is a lifelong Kentuckian and a graduate of Northern Kentucky University. He spent many years covering sports in the Northern Kentucky area before shifting primarily to politics. You can watch Don’s work weeknights at 7:00 and 11:30 on Pure Politics, available exclusively on Spectrum News, HD Channels 403 and 715. If you have a story idea you can reach Don at donald.weber@charter.com.